I’ll just come right out and say it now: the Bon Iver comparisons are kind of inevitable with James Vincent McMorrow. Some have already dubbed him Dublin’s answer to the wispy-voiced Justin Vernon.

From the opening notes of “If I Had A Boat,” the familiar sounds are there. And I’m not going to lie…Justin Vernon was the first thing that came to my mind. Regardless, it is a beautiful track that had me right from the beginning.

Yes, if you were to simply judge McMorrow based on this song and nothing more, the echos of Justin Vernon are quite evident–glaring even. But if you were to delve further and really listen to his music–like his recently released debut, Early In the Morning–you’d find that he is a different artist with a little bit more of a folk lean.

Sure, they both have impossibly luscious and husky voices and have a penchant for layers of falsetto harmonies–but the similarities pretty much end there. His voice is also reminiscent of James Morrison’s at times (“We Don’t Eat”), if we were to be so keen on comparisons.

After going through a bit more of his catalogue, I find the main difference between the two artists to be in the instrumentation. Both sing from emotional depths, but Bon Iver creates more sparse, yet sweeping, atmospheric experiences, while McMorrow relies more on the devices of the singer-songwriter.

Still, if you like Bon Iver, it’s a pretty good bet you’ll dig James Vincent McMorrow.

Search

ABOUT

A Mindful Earful is a sporadically updated Toronto-based music blog all about spreading music for the sake of music and no other reason. Features up-and-coming artists, concert and album reviews, as well as random musical musings.

DISCLAIMER: All MP3s here are posted out of love and for sampling purposes only--so if you love it, please support the artist and buy it! If you are the copyright holder of any song posted here and would like it taken down, please contact me at mindfulearful[at]gmail[dot]com, and it will be removed immediately.

SUBMISSIONS: If you are an artist or band who wishes to have your music considered for review or featured, please click on the contact tab on the toolbar for more information. Or, you can send it to my SoundCloud dropbox! Please note that I only post music that I enjoy and feel fits the site.